The result of a compromise between the North and South Islands, Wellington became the capital of NZ in 1865, replacing Auckland that had been the capital since 1841. The city is located on the southern tip of the North Island and is the country's second largest city. Due to it's omnipresent winds, the city is also affectionately known as "Windy Wellington." It was named to honor Arthur Wellesley, the first Duke of Wellington and victor of the Battle of Waterloo. We arrived in port at 7am but after sleeping in a bit, getting ready and having breakfast, we finally disembarked around 11am. Unlike our previous stops, we didn't need to hop on a shuttle bus to get to the city, downtown Wellington was only a short 20 min walk from the ship. We wandered around downtown
... read more